As part of the organization of the World Bank (WB), employees of the Water Institute “Josip Juraj Strossmayer” took part in a professional education program and met with representatives of the International Association of Water Service Companies in the Danube River Catchment Area (IAWD), the World Bank (WB), the Austrian Water and Waste Management Association (ÖWAV) and the Austrian Association for Gas and Water (ÖVGW), with the primary goal of achieving cooperation and knowledge transfer in the field of educating public water service providers.

During the visit, the representatives of the Institute presented the water management sector of the Republic of Croatia, the activities and work of the Institute and the planned activities to establish a national education centre as one of the measures to reduce losses in the water supply.

The meetings provided valuable information on the education and training that has long been organised by Austrian associations, as well as on the D-Leap education programme implemented by the IAWD in cooperation with the World Bank. Through inter-institutional links with major international organisations and institutions, the first steps were taken to achieve the Institute’s goals as an umbrella institution for training in the field of water management. The long-standing experience of the Austrian partners is a valuable catalyst for the fulfilment of the tasks for which the Institute has been designated by numerous legal and sub-legal acts in the field of water management.